Portrait of Laure Bosc, wife of Adolphe Balguerie

The sitter Laure Bosc has been identified through an inscription on a piece of cardboard found behind the drawing. She was the daughter of the Bordeaux merchant and ship owner Jean-Jacques Bosc (d. 1840). In 1829 she married Adolphe Balguerie (d. 1876) who was also from a rich Bordeaux family of bankers, merchants and ship owners. The Spanish born Rosario Weiss created the drawing in the early 1830s when she lived in Bordeaux. Such a commission from a wealthy and established family recognizes her skill as an artist. The portrait reflects the French neo-classical style of formal portrait drawing popular in early first half of the century. The artist has paid most attention to delineating the sitter’s face, capturing her alertness and intelligence while revealing her elegant attire.


A fascinating aspect of Rosario’s biography is her close relationship with Francisco Goya. Rosario’s mother, Leocadia Zorrilla (1788–1856), was employed by Goya ostensibly as his housekeeper, and in 1817 moved into his house in Madrid with her children. Their relationship has fuelled speculation that Rosario might even have been Goya’s illegitimate daughter. It is clear that Goya was very attached to Rosario and treated her like his own child. At an early age taught her how to draw. Rosario made copies of Goya’s prints in pen and ink and also collaborated with Goya on individual sheets. Very much in vein of Goya, these early sheets show individual figures engaged in different activities. When Goya went into exile to Bordeaux in 1823, Rosario remained in Madrid under the tutelage of Goya’s close friend, the architect Tiburcio Pérez y Cuevo. In the following year Leocadia and Rosario arrived in Bordeaux where Goya continued as her teacher. Goya died in 1828, but Rosario remained where she established herself as a leading artist. In 1833 - shortly after Rosario made this drawing - she returned to Madrid with her mother and continued to work as an artist.